Apple has posted Q3 18 results, and the results won’t be a disappointment to investors, with the Cupertino powerhouse squeezing another good quarter out of the iPhone, and gets a decent one out of the iPad. But Mac sales hit a low not seen in years.

Let’s start with the iPhone. Unit sales of 41.3 million fall pretty in line with Wall Street expectations (the consensus was around 41.6), but while units are up year-on-year only 1 percent, revenue over the same period is up 20 percent.

This has driven up the Average Selling Price to $724, beating the expected ASP of $699. The ASP is, however, down slightly on the previous quarter ASP of $728, but up on the year-ago quarter ASP figure of $606.

It is important to bear in mind that Q3 is the weakest quarter for the iPhone.

iPhone sales

Moving to the iPad, and while unit sales increased 1 percent to 11.55 million year-on-year, revenue dropped 5 percent. This also dragged the ASP down to $410, from $451 for the previous quarter, and also down on the figure of $434 the year-ago quarter.

People are buying cheaper iPads, perhaps because the steam has run out of iPad Pro sales given that they are all now over a year old.

iPad sales

Things are pretty dire for Mac sales, which have slumped to a seven-year-low of 3.72 million. ASP is virtually unchanged from the previous quarter (sitting at $1,432 compared to $1,434), and is actually up from the ASP of $1,303 for the year-ago quarter.

This dramatic unit sales drop will, however, renew the narrative that Apple has taken its eye off the Mac and that sales have suffered dramatically as a result.

Mac sales

Apple’s revenue from “Other Products,” which include AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, HomePod, iPod touch and other Apple-branded and third-party accessories, hit $3.74 billion, down 5 percent from the $3.95 billion from the previous quarter, but up 37 percent from the year-ago quarter figure of $2.73 billion.

The original iPhone, as innovative as it was, didn’t truly mature into the device we know it as until July 2008, when iPhone OS 2.0 was released. The free software update — compatible with the first generation iPhone and preinstalled on the iPhone 3G — added the App Store.

The new service provided developers with an avenue and the tools to build apps or games and sell them directly to users on Apple’s mobile platform, which, at the time, was the iPhone and iPod touch.

Fast forward to now, and millions of iOS users visit Apple’s App Store to download apps and games every single day. The downloaded software has the power to completely change how a person uses the iPhone or iPad, and in some cases, it can change the person’s life. It’s hard to remember iOS without the App Store.

What’s even more stunning is Apple’s internal view of the App Store just 30 days after it launched. Around that time, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs invited Nick Wingfield, who at the time was a Wall Street Journal reporter, to Apple’s Campus to talk about the App Store.

Jobs agreed to let Wingfield record the nearly 50-minute interview. On Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal and The Information published a transcript and the original audio of the interview for the first time.

The entire interview is full of interesting tidbits and insight into Jobs and Apple’s general approach to the App Store. At the end of the interview, it was clear to me that, while bullish on the future of mobile, even Jobs himself didn’t foresee just how much of an impact the App Store would have on not only Apple but the entire industry.

Apple built the App Store using the company’s experience and existing iTunes infrastructure. This, according to Jobs, was a competitive advantage. “No one’s ever duplicated iTunes in over five years. This’ll be even harder because it’s built on top of it,” he said.

Around the same time that Apple launched the App Store, Google was getting ready to release its first Android devices, and it announced its Android Market, now the Google Play Store. Android’s app store launched in October 2008 and took years for Google’s store to catch up to Apple’s in terms of quality and app selection. Other phone makers at the time eventually tried to replicate the App Store, all of which failed.

Revenue potential

Steve Jobs “Phone differentiation used to be about radios and antennas and things like that. We think, going forward, the phone of the future will be differentiated by software.”

At the 30-day mark, the App Store had $30 million in revenue, exceeding Apple’s internal forecast and expectations. When asked if the App Store’s first month had exceeded the company’s revenue expectations, Jobs speculated about its future. “Maybe it’ll be a billion-dollar marketplace at some point in time. This doesn’t happen very often. A whole new billion-dollar market opens up: 360 million [yearly run rate] in the first 30 days, I’ve never seen anything like this in my career for software,” Jobs said.

In June, just before its 10-year anniversary, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced the App Store has exceeded $100 billion in revenue for developers.

The demand for music over app

Jobs never came out and said it, but listening to the interview, you get a sense that Jobs thought iTunes would always be more successful than the App Store.

When asked about the App Store’s revenue exceeding iTunes, Jobs downplayed the App Store’s growth, stating: “Music is a two and a half billion-dollar business a year for us. I’m thrilled at $360 million a year run rate. We’ll be dancing on the ceiling if we cross a half a billion. Maybe someday we’ll get to a billion.”

Apple combines iTunes and App Store revenue under Services in its earnings reports, making it difficult to definitively compare the two revenue streams. However, with users spending $300 million on New Years Day 2018 alone, it’s safe to say the App Store has surpassed iTunes.

Part of this could be due to Jobs believing there was still a need for a dedicated music player. “I think there’s going to be two kinds of devices in the music space. One is going to be just the pure evolved music device. People want it for music, maybe music videos, maybe occasional movie, but they really want it for music,” he said.

Software as a differentiator

The App Store was built as a means to differentiate the iPhone from the competition, with Jobs viewing software as the selling point for Apple products.

“Well, our theory on iPhone is that phone differentiation used to be about radios and antennas and things like that. We think, going forward, the phone of the future will be differentiated by software,” he said.

This statement was entirely true at the time. I remember reviewing BlackBerry phones and comparing the call quality and signal strength compared to older BlackBerry’s and imported Nokia phones, while software was hardly mentioned, if at all. In 2008, software truly was what set iOS (then iPhone OS) apart from Android, BlackBerry, or Nokia.

In 2018, however, we’ve come full circle. Software differences are now broken down into where app icons can be placed on the device’s home screen and how many apps can run at the same time. Instead of radios and antennas, we now compare cameras, display quality, and battery life.

If you’ve been patiently waiting for Apple to refresh some of its aging hardware, you might not have to wait much longer before being able to put down some serious cash in exchange for some shiny new hardware.

Two updated iPad Pros – According to the report there will be new 12.9- and 11-inch iPad Pros with Face ID technology.

A bunch of new Macs – According to Kuo the iMac, MacBook Pro, MacBook, and the Mac Mini will get a refresh with the MacBook Air being possibly replaced with a new cheap laptop.

New Apple Watch models – These are reported to have 1.57-inch 1.78-inch displays and feature enhanced heat rate detection.

AirPower charger – This wireless charger that was announced back in September of last year that could simultaneously charge an iPhone, an Apple Watch, and the AirPods carry case could finally be released.

Microsoft has unveiled its challenger to the iPad. Called the Surface Go, the new tablet is aimed pretty much across the board to everyone that uses a tablet — be they education, consumer, or business customers.

But the tablet space is nowadays essentially owned by the iPad. Sure, there are a few Android (primarily now Amazon tablets) and Windows-based systems out there (with Microsoft’s own Surface line being a prominent player in the PC space), but the iPad is the pacesetter in this market.

Another factor to bear in mind is that the tablet market is shrinking. This could work in Microsoft’s favor in some ways because it might indicate that buyers are bored with what’s currently on offer and something new might reinvigorate sales.

On the other hand, Microsoft might very well be fighting a headwind. Only time will tell.

But what of the tablet itself?

I see the tablet market breaking down into two segments — there’s the price-conscious end, and there’s those who want high-performance and features.

Apple’s cheapest iPad is the 32GB Wi-Fi-only version, and that is priced at $329. The Surface Go priced at $399 seems to offer more given that it comes with 64GB of storage, but it’s important to bear in mind that consumer model runs Windows 10 Home in S Mode, and those wanting full Windows 10 will either need to upgrade the operating system or buy the commercial version.

The 128GB Wi-Fi-only iPad is priced at $429, and all of a sudden the Surface Go at the higher storage tier feels pricey.

I also feel that the RAM configurations for the Surface Go add more confusion to the mix. Without hands-on time with the different configurations, it’s going to be hard to know whether 4GB of RAM is enough or 8GB will be needed for all but the most basic of tasks.

First off, you’re getting Windows. Don’t for one moment underestimate this. OK, Windows 10 Home in S Mode might be restrictive, but this can be upgraded to Windows 10 Home if you so desire. That flexibility to run Windows applications — within the capability of the device — will be invaluable to some.

The Surface Go also features a USB-C port and a micro SD expansion slot.

The iPad doesn’t have these features.

On paper, Microsoft claims the battery life for the Surface Go is 10 hours, in line with the iPad, but this is again something that will need to be tested in the real world.

You can also kit out the Surface Go with lots of quite pricey accessories. The snazzy Surface Type Cover adds $99 or $129 to the price, depending on which you get. The Surface Pen is another $99, while the new Bluetooth-enabled Surface Mobile Mouse is more reasonably priced at $34.99.

All in all, I’m left unsure as to how the Surface Go stacks up against the iPad. On paper the Surface Go feels like a reasonably-priced, well-specced tablet, but the messiness of the different RAM configurations and the different flavors of Windows 10 adds a level of confusion that doesn’t exist for iPad buyers.

On the flipside, a Windows-powered tablet with a USB-C port and a micro SD expansion slot will be attractive to certain users (and it’s likely that these are the sorts of users who will be better placed to navigate the complexity caused by the different RAM and Windows 10 options).

The Surface Go is certainly an interesting device and builds on the foundation carved out by the existing Surface hardware, but as to whether it will do much to shift the needle with relation to market share or unit sales, I’m far from convinced.

One of the most frustrating things to fix on any device is connectivity issues. Maybe it’s that you can’t access Wi-Fi or cellular or Bluetooth from a particular device (and you know it works because your other devices are working fine), or maybe you’re experiencing those super-annoying random connectivity drops or laggy connections that can be so destructive to productivity.

It might be time to nuke your iPhone or iPad’s network settings and start from scratch.

Note that before you do this, carrying out this procedure will wipe your Wi-Fi settings and passwords, Bluetooth device pairings, VPN settings, and cellular settings. While your cellular settings will be reconfigured based on your SIM card and network, you will need to reconnect to Wi-Fi networks (so make sure you have the passwords you need), repair Bluetooth devices, and reconfigure VPN connections. Depending on your setup, this can take a few seconds to, well, a long time, so bear that in mind.

OK, so with those precautions out of the way, here’s how to reset your Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and cellular settings.

First, click on Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings:

Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings

You will then be asked for your device’s pincode or passcode:

Enter the device’s pincode or passcode

Finally, you’re asked to confirm if you want to reset the device’s network settings:

Confirm if you want to reset the device’s network settings

If you choose to reset the network settings then your device will now reboot and the process is completed. It’s now up to you to reconfigure Wi-Fi and Bluetooth settings (which is the time-consuming bit).

Thursday’s update gives public beta participants and developers the same build number.

iOS 12 primarily focuses on performance improvements across all iOS devices. New features, however, include the ability to monitor and control the amount of time users spend on a device or in a specific app, better parental controls, an improved Photos app, and Siri Shortcuts.

Users can sign up for free on the iOS 12 public beta on Apple’s website. The beta program gives users a chance to test and provide feedback on the operating system before its final release, which usually occurs in September.

PREVIOUS AND RELATED COVERAGE:

iOS 12 brings some good news for you folks running older iPhones and iPads. But when it comes to watchOS 5, 1st-generation Apple Watches are left out in the cold (even if yours is the $10K solid gold Edition version!).

The beta is now available to download. Keep in mind developers have been able to play with the software since Apple’s developer conference in early June. Now, the general public can test it. Just be aware that beta software isn’t finished and could be loaded with bugs.

How to download the iOS 12 public beta

To download the iOS 12 public beta, you do not need a paid developers account, and you don’t have to deal with the hassle of registering your device’s UDID. Apple’s iOS public betas, as well as all subsequent updates, are automatically pushed to your device over the air.

But first, you need to back up your device, then visit the Apple Beta Program website, and click the sign up button. You’ll then have to sign in with your Apple ID login. After, from your iOS device, visit beta.apple.com/profile, and download the iOS Beta Configuration Profile.

Once downloaded, go to General > Software Update (in the Settings app) and wait for the iOS 12 public beta prompt to appear. Tap it to download and install. The iOS 12 beta runs on iPhone 5S and later, iPad mini 2 and later, and the iPod touch (sixth-gen) and later.

Previous and related coverage:

iOS 12 brings some good news for you folks running older iPhones and iPads. But when it comes to watchOS 5, 1st-generation Apple Watches are left out in the cold (even if yours is the $10K solid gold Edition version!).

Good news for anyone who has an older iOS device — iOS 12 won’t be sending you to the Apple Store to buy new hardware.

Put simply, if your iPhone or iPad can run iOS 11 then it will also run the iOS 12 update scheduled to land this coming fall.

Here is a full list of devices that iOS 12 will support:

iPhone:

iPhone X

iPhone 8/8 Plus

iPhone 7/7 Plus

iPhone 6s/6s Plus

iPhone 6/6 Plus

iPhone SE

iPhone 5s

iPad:

12.9‑inch iPad Pro 2nd generation

12.9‑inch iPad Pro 1st generation

10.5‑inch iPad Pro

9.7‑inch iPad Pro

iPad Air 2

iPad Air

iPad 6th generation

iPad 5th generation

iPad mini 4

iPad mini 3

iPad mini 2

iPod touch

iPod touch 6th generation

What about tvOS 12 and watchOS 5?

tvOS 12 will be available to 4th generation Apple TV devices and later, which currently run tvOS 11.

On the watchOS front, 1st generation Apple Watch are out of luck (given how sluggish these devices are running watchOS 4, I’m not surprised to see them sidelined), but everyone else who has bought an Apple Watch will get watchOS 5.

Clarification: Apple Watch naming is a bit confusing. The first Apple Watch, released April 2015, was renamed the Apple Watch Original when it was updated to the Apple Watch Series 1 and released alongside the new Apple Watch Series 2 in September 2016. The newer Apple Watch Series 3 was released September 2017. The Apple Watch that is not supported by watchOS 5 is the 2015 Apple Watch Original.

So if you own one of those solid gold $10K first-generation Apple Watch Edition, well, it was fun while it lasted.

iOS 11.4 is out, and it brings with it a feature that was first promised to us in iOS 11.3 designed to help streamline messaging between devices.

Called Messages in iCloud, it syncs messages you receive through the Messages app across your devices, whether that be your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or even a Mac (sorry Apple Watch owners, you don’t get this feature, and will most likely have to wait for watchOS 5).

First off, to make Messages in iCloud work you need to download and install iOS 11.4 onto your iOS devices, and macOS 10.13.5 onto your Macs (as of time of publication macOS 10.13.5 has not been released, but is expected shortly).

After that, you need to activate Messages in iCloud on your iOS devices. And this is where it gets problematic because if you’re not the sort of person who reads the release notes for updates, you won’t know where to look for it.

To turn on Messages in iCloud, you need to:

Click on Settings

At the top of the Settings app, click on the space showing your name

Next click on iCloud

Finally, flip the toggle switch next to Messages under the Apps Using iCloud section

Do this for all your iOS devices.

How to enable Messages in iCloud

You also need to activate this feature on your Macs (once macOS 10.13.5 is out and you have installed it):

Open Messages

In the menu bar, click Messages > Preferences

Click Accounts

Click the checkbox next to Enable Messages in iCloud

OK, so why might you not want to activate this feature? Well, remember that it’s called Messages in iCloud, which means that it makes use of, and uses up, your iCloud storage. And it might just mean that you have to start paying Apple for more iCloud storage space.

Everyone who sets up an iCloud account gets 5 gigabytes of free storage space, but once you hit that limit, you either have to pay for more storage or start to triage the apps that make use of your iCloud storage. Otherwise, if you hit your limit you’ll find that your devices will no longer back up to iCloud, you won’t be able to send or receive emails with your iCloud email account, new photos and videos won’t be uploaded to your iCloud Photo Library, and that features such as iCloud Drive, other iCloud apps, and your text messages won’t stay up to date across all your devices.

Extra iCloud storage space isn’t all that expensive – plans start at $0.99 for 50 gigabytes – but if you don’t want to have to start giving Apple more money on a regular basis, you should be mindful of the fact that Messages in iCloud could be what pushes your iCloud usage over the edge.

]]>http://technewscode.com/ios-11-4-tip-how-to-enable-messages-in-icloud-and-why-you-might-want-to-keep-this-feature-turned-off/feed/0WWDC 2018: 9 features I want to see in iOS 12http://technewscode.com/wwdc-2018-9-features-i-want-to-see-in-ios-12/
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During the keynote, Apple typically shows off the next version of its latest operating systems and occasionally some new hardware. This year, we can expect to see updates to iOS, tvOS, macOS, watchOS, and hopefully updates to the HomePod.

With iOS 11 unveiled last year, that means iOS 12 is up next. And for this year’s release, there are some things I’d love to see Apple add to its mobile operating system.

Default apps

I will keep asking for this until it actually happens. Users deserve the option to set a default app for things like a browser, calendar, email, or photos.

I hate to sound so annoyed with this request, but the truth is I am. It’s annoying to own a device and not be trusted by its maker to set Gmail as my email app because I feel it’s better than Apple Mail.

Sure, I can use the Gmail app on my iPhone right now, but if I want to click on a link to compose an email, I still need to have the Mail app installed, or I have to copy and paste the email address.

Ditch the app grid

When users were first learning what apps were and how to navigate a touch display, the app grid made sense. But some 10 years later, we are well beyond the learning period.

Android has always allowed users to move and arrange apps wherever they want, and it’s time for iOS to follow. I should be able to arrange app icons on my iPhone wherever I want on the screen.

Better notifications

Each morning I wake up to about hundred notifications from various apps. The list of alerts is incredibly long and annoying to scroll through — so much so, in fact, I don’t even bother looking through them. I unlock my iPhone X and then go to each app with a notification badge and work through my alerts that way.

It’s a pain, but it’s better than scrolling through the notification panel.

iOS users would benefit from the grouping of notifications from the same app, with a single tap revealing more information for each app group.

Move Control Center

I complained about the location of Control Center last year shortly after the iPhone X was released, and I still feel the same way. Control Center on iOS 11 and the iPhone X is about as useful as the long list of notifications I deal with each morning. That is to say: Not at all.

I’m still not entirely sure what the best method is for access Control Center, but I do know the current solution isn’t it.

Multiple user support on iPad

After Apple unveiled the ability for education users to share iPads with multiple users, it has only made sense for the feature to make its way to everyday users.

With the iPad Pro and Apple’s entire marketing campaign around its tablet lineup focused on treating the iPad as a computer, the ability to share one device with a partner or family is the next logical step.

Better parental controls

Google’s Family Link and Amazon’s FreeTime are impressive parental control tools for their respective operating systems and devices.

Apple’s Family Sharing tools allow users to share apps and purchased content, which is a good start, but the rest of the parental controls are on each individual device and lack the more granular controls that Apple’s competitors offer.

For example, I limit the amount of screen time each one of my children has each day — independent of one another — through an app using a competitor service.

Always-on display

Android makers have long featured an always-on display, where the time and any pending notifications are dimly shown on the screen. The ability to quickly glance at the display and check to see if there are important notifications or check the time is convenient, and it’s something I sorely miss each time I switch back to the iPhone X.

The feature doesn’t need to be overly complicated — just show me the time, app icons for notifications, and perhaps any upcoming calendar appointments. Keep it simple.

OK Google, please help Siri

Alexa can help too, if needed. Siri has its own device in the HomePod, and it’s no longer OK for Siri just to be OK. Alexa and Google Assistant walk circles around Siri, regardless of the device you use it on, and it’s not even close.

Let me use Siri on the HomePod to do more than just play music and check a message or two. Multiple user accounts via voice recognition, with parental controls for children who use the HomePod.

iCloud Messages… but here’s why

Apple first announced iCloud Messages last year alongside iOS 11, and it’s yet to be officially released. It’s been available in several iOS 11 betas, but it has been removed with each public release.

iCloud Messages syncs your message threads across all your Apple devices, so if you delete a thread on your Mac, it’s also removed from your iPhone.

While that sounds useful — and it is — I want iCloud Messages to finally see the light of day with anticipation it’s laying the groundwork for iMessage on Android. If Apple has figured out a way to sync message threads across multiple Apple devices, it can hypothetically figure out a way to sync it to any brand of device.